Music to Your Ears

By Laura Marrich

It's time for the Taos Solar Music Festival! Who can resist the lure of mega-watt artists the Indigo Girls, Michelle Shocked, Michale Franti and Spearhead on a huge, solar-powered stage in Taos? Not me! The complete lineup, along with other useful information, is at www.solarmusicfest.com. See you in Kit Carson Park from Friday, June 24, to Sunday, June 26, rain or shine.

The Vans 2005 Warped Tour rolls through Las Cruces this Tuesday, June 28. That's only a three hour drive for 80 jaw-dropping bands, including the Dropkick Murphys, No Use for a Name, Tsunami Bomb and The Explosion. Anyway, I'm going and you should too. Call in sick and log on to www.warpedtour.com for ticket information and other goodies.

Someone asked me if last summer's Downtown Thursdays live music series was continuing this year. It ain't, but I'll tell you what is—Fourth Street Live. It's an all-ages alfresco concert nestled in the heart of Downtown, but this one's on Friday. Media darling Kevin Hopper (The Journal, thinc.creative design) is coordinating the summer-long series with all kinds of titillating local and national acts. This Friday's spotlight is centered on Mundo Aparte, an alternative Latin rock band out of Los Angeles.

Speaking of free, all-ages shows, The Zone Smoke Shop on San Mateo has taken it upon themselves to host a few of their own. We just love that. You can find a brace of local hip-hop emcees and DJs out on the patio this Thursday at 6 p.m., including the Garbage Pail Kidz and 2-bers. Call 837-1942 for more information.

Have you heard about The Paramount? Turns out that Santa Fe's genre-busting music haven of more than seven years is closing. Owner Donalee Goodbrod suffered a stroke last year and decided that leaving the club business was in her best interest. True to form, they'll host one last knock-down, drag-out party to say goodbye. "The Last Dance," as it's aptly called, will coincide with Santa Fe's Gay Pride celebration on June 25. Internationally renowned DJ Frankie Knuckles (a.k.a., "The Godfather of House Music") is actually flying out from Ibeza to play this show, which makes the $10 cover sound like a steal to me. You can find The Paramount at 331 Sandoval in Santa Fe.